St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-03-21
CREEPING UP SLOWLY.
The Flood in the Missouri River Has
Reached the High Water Mark of
1881 at Bismarck.
Al Additional Rise Expected To-day When
the Overflow From the Yellowstone
River Comes Down.
Considerable Damage to Property Bu1
No Lives Have Been Lost as
Far as Known.
Communication With Mandan Cut on
and Railroad Trains Sidetracked
at Bismarck.
Special to the Globe.

Special to the Globe.
BISMARCK, Oak. March 20.-To make
the flood situation at Bismarck and Mandan
understood plan of the sites of the two
towns seems necessary. Bismarck is built
on high land about one mile from the pres
ent channel of the Missouri. Its southern
front is on the bank of the ancient bed of
the river. and the railway line runs Though
the town two hundred to six hundred feet
from the bank. The river formerly
ran close TO this bank. making
circle to the east, which
is bounded Oh the north by Bismarck's site
and on the east by a large plane, at the
edge of which the men OF Gen. Sibley made
fortified camp in 1862. ana on the south
by high bluffs, at the base OF which Apple
Greek rushes to the Missouri, emptying into
il on the east side of Sibley island. In the
westward movement of the river to its
present channel it has left the level bottom
lands, averaging about sixteen feet above
the ordinary level of the river. This bot
tom land extends southwark from Bismarck
six or seven miles and three to five miles
wide from east to west. The southern part
of the bottom is
COVERED WITH TIMBER
and the upper half. known as Bismarck
Meadows contains several small ponds or
lakes near the east side, occupying parts of
what was once the bed of the river. The
most valuable property on the. meadow
lands is Blys brick yards and Hol-
lands stock YARDS Office buildings and Il
slaughter house. AT the brick yards sheds,
where Bismarck celebrated its last Fourth
Df1 1pIN- iS ahOnt
water. At the brick yards. about one mile
south from town, the water is nearly up to
the caves of the buildings. The strong
current sweeps eaStWardS past town just
under the bank. but the current which
takes most Of the floating ice runs south
eastward, just south OF Hollands place.
On the west side of the Missouri, two miles
from it, Mandan is built in the Heart river
valley, mostly on bottom land twenty to
thirty feet lower than the railroad grade in
the Bismarck yards. The present flood
has overtiowed two-thirds of Mandan, but
does not reach the west end. The water
on Main street, as near as can be judged
from this side by observations through spy
glasses, is from seven to
TEN FEET DEEP,
and covers all Of that street east of the
railway depot. The back streets and nearly
all of the residence part of Mandan are also
flooded. The ice packs above and below
the railroad bridge on the west side of the
river. and covering all the bottom lands be-
tween Mandan and the river make it i'm
possible to open communication by boat.
The passage cannot be made by railroad
because the track for mile or more on the
west side is deeply covered with water and
ice. Telegraph and telephone communica-
ton were broken Friday morning and can
not be restored until the flood subsidies.
An examination of the high railroad trestle
Of the bridge shows it is less injured than
was reported yesterday. An engine with
two loaded cars crossed this morning. carry
ing timber for repairs of the trestle and
other materials for strengthening the en-
bankment and dyke. The track will be
open quickly after the flood has gone by.
Passengers from the east by trains of the
last three days are waiting here. Most of
them are interested in the flood and have
their anxiety TO proceed westward lessened
by the knowledge that extensive
RAILROAD REPAIRS
have to be made along the Heart river and
in the Y Yellowstone valley before trains can
be run through. Most Of the material for
these repairs went through, going west
ward. Wednesday and Thursday last. The
snow and wind storms yesterday ceased
during last night. and to-day has been clear
and pleasant. Ice ran freely from above
from 10 a. IN. to 3 p. IN. and was turned by
the ice packs OF the west side and above
the gorge at Sibley island onto the
Bismarck meadow lands At 5 p.
III. the pack on the bottom and
meadow lands had extended northward
to within mile of town, from Hollands
stock yards to the timber bottom OH the
southwest and to Apple river bluffs. On
the southeast there is a close ice pack, cov-
ering an area of several square miles, while
beyond, at the southwest, appears the great
ice gorge at Sibley island, which turns the
main flood eastward. The cessation Of the
ice flow this afternoon indicates the form
ing of new gorges above. The rise of the
water which recommended about 10 a. m,
still continues, and leads to the belief that
part of
TIE YELLOWSTONE FLOOD
has already reached here, and that the
highest stage of water will occur tomorrow
morning. At p. III. the water level south
of Bismarck was still four inches short of
the high water mark of 1881. Stage COM
munication OH the river side routes north
and south from this city has been sus-
pended since Thursday because of roads be-
ing overflowed and bridges carried out in
all the valley tributaries of the Missouri
.Telegraphic communication being also Sus-
pended, we have no information from Bu-
ford, Yates or the intervening river coun-
try. 1t is certain, however, that settlers
along the river have met with heavy losses
of domestic stock and other prop
erty, and it is feared there has been loss
of human life on timbered bottoms, where
people could have had no warning of the
sudden coming of the flood. which over
flowed all the bottom lands from Little Mis-
souri, to Fort Yates in one great rush OF
waters during Thursday night and Friday
forenoon. Farmers who came into town
to-day from the Burnt Creek neighborhood
reported they saw not less than hundred
deer on the bluffs bordering Oh the Missouri
bottom lands within four miles of town.
At first the deer, apparently stupefed by
the dangers from which they had escaped,
showed no alarm when men approached
close to them. but hunters this afternoon
drove them to seek refuge i'll eastward fight.
The parties who yesterday rescued the set
tiers from the Bismarck timber bottoms are
the
HEROES OF THE DAY,
and find groups of eager listeners where.
ever they will tell how they made their dan
gerous voyage. 1t appears the men in the
skiff who took Dutch Mike'and companions
from the roof of then shack found their lit
tie boat so heavily loaded that they dare
not come out from the shelter of the timber,
but lay there holding their boat by clnging
to branches of the trees and the yawl came
I'D took and out the two rescued
men. In the meantime the timber was
rapidly filling with ice and through this the
five men in the yawl had to work their boat
along the telegraph road until they found
and rescued Beals and his companion. A
few hours afterwards it would have beer
bal ho,f ;,,@ ~,